TUSTIN – On a night when both boys basketball teams struggled to sink shots, Tustin sophomore forward Jerome Childs played a crucial part in the Tillers’ game against Valencia.
Childs scored 12 points and provided the second-half spark that helped the Tillers earn a 42-33 victory over the Tigers in an Empire League game Friday at Tustin High.
“We had a tough time making some shots from the perimeter,” Tustin coach Ringo Bossenmeyer said. “Jerome Childs was huge. His influence in the second half … (he) woke us up with a few offensive rebounds, and the put-backs got us back in the game.”
Childs finished the game 6-for-9 shooting, and the win helped the Tillers (11-7, 2-1) stay atop the league standings.
Valencia (9-9, 1-1) mostly kept Tustin senior Haakon Ullrich in check, making it difficult for the Tillers to get the ball to the 6-foot-6 senior near the basket.
With Tustin leading by one in the middle of the fourth quarter, Isaiah Gonzalez found Childs open in the paint and Childs’ basket pushed Tustin ahead, 30-27.
Tustin pulled away from there, as the basket sparked a fire in team’s defense and shooting.
Valencia’s leading scorer, Dalton Sloniger (13 points), was 3 of 11 from 3-point range.
There were plenty of missed shots to start the game. Tustin made its first basket with three minutes left in the first quarter, and Valencia did not fare much better. Tustin finished the opening quarter with a 9-5 lead.
Valencia put together a strong second quarter and went into the break leading, 16-13. The Tillers led at the end of the third quarter, 28-25.
“We know at times we are going to be a little bit of an inconsistent shooting team, so we know that our calling cards got to be our defense and our rebounding,” Bossenmeyer said.
